J W Bennett Posted December 24, 2007 Share Posted December 24, 2007 Got to spend some "me" time in the shop the last two days. I've had two leg vises in the corner that needed stands built before spring gets here. I made these based on the design in Mark Aspery's book "The Skills of a Blacksmith. Vol. 1". I changed a few things in order to use what I had in the resource pile.They are stable and aren't too heavy. Might even get some paint on them before spring. I ran out of 1/2" x 1 1/2" bolts so I am a bolt short on one of the mounts until Wednesday. I also have an anvil that needs a stand before spring. If all goes well tomorrow I will make a stand based on the one in the book also. John Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimbob Posted December 24, 2007 Share Posted December 24, 2007 in your picture the leg at the bottom front comes straight out on both vices...in the book Mark sez you can arange the legs either way. have you tried this setup before so as to know if the way pictured works better than the other way...does that make sense(I'm collecting the parts to make the same stands) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J W Bennett Posted December 24, 2007 Author Share Posted December 24, 2007 Jimbob, I have made several different portable (?) stands with varying results. I usually stand to one side(right side) most of the time when working at the vise so I decided to go with the leg facing forward. It seems to be stable and I think it will make it harder to tip toward the person using it. John Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimbob Posted December 24, 2007 Share Posted December 24, 2007 thanks thats what I was having a problem with deciding which way to mount it...did you use 1 1/2 sq tube or something else? I found some 2 in I think I'm going to use just cause its free. also are you going to put sand in the upright tube? I don't know how this posted twice...must be the magic of Christmas! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J W Bennett Posted December 25, 2007 Author Share Posted December 25, 2007 Jimbob, The legs are 2" square heavy wall and the upright tube is 4" square tubing. If you have an inside triangle measurement of 3"x3"x3" the 4" tubing will fit without a baseplate and you can use the front leg to mount the vise leg into. The upright tubing is on the diamond compared to the vise. No I haven't filled the leg with sand. If I need more weight I will weld up the inner triangle and put a filler plug at the top of the tube and a drain plug at the bottom of the tube and fill with water. But as stable as it feels I don't think it will be needed. I have a vise mounted to a heavy layout table in the shop. These are for portable use this coming spring and summer. John Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KFCHambone@hotmail.com Posted December 8, 2008 Share Posted December 8, 2008 This is my first time posting on this fourm. I just recently made a stand for my vise also. The Propane tank can be filled and drained to add an extra 40lbs. It's pretty stable for the work I will be doing with it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J W Bennett Posted December 8, 2008 Author Share Posted December 8, 2008 Thats a different setup. Let us know how it works for you. Does the leg go down into/thru the tank? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Aspery Posted December 9, 2008 Share Posted December 9, 2008 I have seen some variations to this (portable) stand. One I really liked had three pivot points set about 6 inches down from the table. From memory these were arranged - one on each of the two front corners and one at the back flat side of the square upright pipe. The legs pivoted out from these points to the ground, making a triangle shape - with the leg (hypotenuse) ground (opposite) and upright pipe (adjacent). The legs were secured to the bottom of the upright pipe by chain going to the bottom of the leg, following the opposite side. It seemed a sturdy set-up for a portable unit. The really nice thing was that the legs folded away for very easy transport, unlike mine in the book. Steve from Colorado is to be credited with the idea. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
texasalterna Posted December 9, 2008 Share Posted December 9, 2008 what is the purpose of the leg on a leg vice? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Einhorn Posted December 9, 2008 Share Posted December 9, 2008 My humble understanding is that the leg serves to transfer the resulting forces from pounding into the floor rather than the bracket attaching the vise to the table. The leg allows you to take advantage of the compression strength of the leg rather than depend on the shear strength of the mounting bracket parts. what is the purpose of the leg on a leg vice? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rustyshackleford Posted December 9, 2008 Share Posted December 9, 2008 My humble understanding is... As is mine Texasalterna Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
texasalterna Posted December 9, 2008 Share Posted December 9, 2008 Ah i see. thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KFCHambone@hotmail.com Posted December 13, 2008 Share Posted December 13, 2008 No it doesn't go through the tank. I figured I'm going to have the vise for the rest of my life (or its life) so I cut it. I didn't want to cut it and felt it was a sin to do so but whatever. So the leg wouldn't slide all over the place I made a sleeve so the end of the leg could fit it snugly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J W Bennett Posted December 13, 2008 Author Share Posted December 13, 2008 Thanks, I was just curious, Like I said before let us know how it works for you. John Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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